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Common reads
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Rosemarie
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Oct 17, 2023 11:23AM
It certainly will!
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Rosemarie wrote: "It certainly will!"Thanks, Rosemarie!
For a number of years, our group has done an annual read, which since 2019 we've done in July. So, we generally start brainstorming in May. Right now, Rosemarie is vacationing in Europe, and won't be back until the end of the month. So she asked me to post, so as to at least get the ball rolling, and to see if folks in the group are still interested in doing these reads. (I'll be offline on vacation myself from May 27 until May 31; but that won't be a problem, since we don't post the poll until around June 1.)Assuming that the group is up for a read, my suggestion would be The Spy Who Came In from the Cold by John le Carré. That's actually one that I've already read; but I read it back in the early 70s, and although I wasn't very impressed with it at the time, I've since thought that I might have appreciated it more if I'd been more mature and less callow. I'm interested in reading it again, and will join in the read if the group picks it.
Hi Werner,I am hesitant to participate this year. I started a new full time job and yet another Master's degree. However, I have not read a spy novel for a while so I am very tempted. So count me in.
I hear ya, Oksana! I'm working full-time myself and have gone through two master's programs (although I was able to study full-time and only work part-time), so I know you're going to be busy. But if the Le Carre book is picked, and you can get time to join us, we'd love to have you!
Thank you, Werner. My first two Master’s degrees were full-time as well. This time I am taking 1 or 2 classes a semester so it is going to take a while.
Hang in there, Oksana, and best wishes!
I am unlikely to join in on this one. I am not too keen on reading spy novels - although I do like them on talking books, and TV/Film. I am way behind on writing my wife's family history and I am hoping to finish another couple of projects by the end of June, so July is when I plan to get back to the book - I haven't found a skeleton yet and I won't stop till I find one to equal the one I found when writing my family history!I could be possibly be tempted with a Nevil Shute story. My preference would be Requiem for a Wren.
Way to go, Oksana! I wish you success in your career and your studies.I've got a bit of quiet time now before our dinner-our farewell dinner with the group in Zurich.
I would read the LeCarre book since it's a fairly short one, and I enjoyed the movie with Richard Burton since I'm a big fan of that actor.
We're laid back here so we'll just see how things work out.
No one is obliged to join our common reads since real life comes first!
Good luck in your writing, Christopher.
Thanks Rosemary. My main stumbling block is that when I did my family my mother was still alive - and still is at 97 next week. So I was able to use her as a font of anecdotal stories, which I was then able to corroborate from different sources, including my own memories from childhood - both first and second hand. There is nobody alive of that generation in my wife's family that we have any contact with, so I have to rely on my wife and her two sisters - who never agree on anything! So I am having to plot my way through this mine field, secure in the knowledge that I will probably end up pleasing none of them!In case you are wondering - they asked me to do it....... I enjoy the writing but less so the research. My extended family all very much appreciated my efforts, so I think it will be worth it to persevere. It will become a permanent record for the Grandchildren and beyond.
That's definitely a worthwhile project. My husband is into genealogy and I know that I could never do that type of research. It requires a lot of patience.
Christopher wrote: "I am unlikely to join in on this one. I am not too keen on reading spy novels.... I could be possibly be tempted with a Nevil Shute story. My preference would be Requiem for a Wren"Just to clarify, at this point The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is only a suggestion. If there are others, the group will vote on them in a poll.
Nevil Shute qualifies as a British writer. I'd thought that he was Australian, but he was actually an Englishman, born in London (though he lived the last ten years of his life in Australia). Would you like us to put Requiem for a Wren in the poll, Christopher?
Absolutely! I have read it 3 or 4 times and I would look forward to reading it again.
Okay --we've got two suggestions so far.
Nevil Shute was a very good story teller. Several of his books were made into films. Many of his books are based on the premise of ordinary people being confronted with a situation that requires them to step up and be counted. The books can seem a bit dated now. In particular the language can jar a bit, particularly when he is referring to women, and their place in society. But he was just reflecting the reality of the time. He was no misogynist. Many of his books have a strong female character demonstrating that women can match men in many aspects, and who is essential to the outcome of the story. A Town Like Alice and Requiem being good examples of this. In fact he was ahead of his time in this area.
He was an Engineer, and was part of the team that designed the British balloons that were used in WW1. He then went on to run his own business that designed and built airplanes. Writing was just his hobby, but in the 1950's and 60's he was one of the best selling authors.
He moved to Australia fairly late in life, where his books were already very popular. The Ausies sort of adopted him, and they have a museum dedicated to his work and life. There is no such honour for him in the UK.
Thanks for that background information, Christopher (a lot of it was new to me!). A Town Like Alice has been on my to-read shelf for quite a while.
A Town like Alice is really good. Over the years I've read almost all of Shute's books.
The book that comes top of the NS registered enthusiasts list is Trustee from the Toolroom - which I would recommend. On my top 5 list I include Pied Piper and The Rainbow and the Rose, as well as Alice and Requiem. The strong woman characters are not so obvious in Pied Piper and the Rose - but they are there. I have included a link to the Nevil Shute Foundation web site where there is a lot of information on NS. You will see that I am the Hertfordshire rep! Just one of about 25 in the UK, 15 in Australia and about 100 in the US/Mexico. In all he is "represented" in 25 countries around the world.
http://www.nevilshute.org/bio.php
You may have seen an old B/W film called No Highway in the sky starring James Stewart as the socially awkward hero, who is an aircraft designer convinced that a particular design of aircraft is unsafe. This was a NS story called just "No Highway". The film won no awards but it was the highest box office film of 1951.
One quirk that nobody has ever been able to explain is that in Alice and Requiem he uses the same initials for the 3 main women characters - JP - and he even gives the dogs the same name.
There is also a recently published unfinished novel based on a similar scenario to Requiem where he has used the same initials again!
Every time I read Requiem I fall in love with Janet Prentice again, initially as a peer, but now as a Father figure! My wife knows so you can't blackmail me!
His legacy lives on.
Christopher wrote: "You may have seen an old B/W film called No Highway in the sky starring James Stewart as the socially awkward hero, who is an aircraft designer convinced that a particular design of aircraft is unsafe. This was a NS story called just "No Highway"."No, I haven't --overall, I haven't watched as many movies as most folks. But I did once watch the movie adaptation of On the Beach on TV. (It didn't tempt me to read the book, however, since though it's a well-made film it's very tragic and depressing.)
Thanks for the added information, and the link!
I never recommend On The Beach to anyone. As you say it is thoroughly depressing - up there with Anne Frank! (I do recommend that to people).I always warn newcomers to NS not to start with OTB as they probably wouldn't bother to read any of the others afterwards. That said it is usually in the top 5 or 6 favourites on the NS website.....
One of my favourites is The Pied Piper-it's a lovely book.
There was a film made of Pied Piper but it is not generally available. With a good a good cast. The NS web site has a DVD copy that they are prepared to lend to people for a small donation - £5 I think. If you ring them they can help you with this. You may have to become a member but this is free I think.There was also a TV adaptation made some years ago starting Peter O'Toole, again with a good supporting cast.
Christopher, the thought struck me that, in the event that a Nevil Shute book wins the poll, that book will be the first introduction to his work for some of us in the group. Do you think Requiem for a Wren is a better choice for that purpose than, say, A Town Like Alice would be? (Not being familiar with his corpus, I don't know the answer to that question myself, which is why I'm asking. :-) )
I would find it hard to choose between Pied Piper, Alice or Requiem. I think with Alice many people will have seen the film or TV adaptation so may have preconceived ideas distorted by any variations from the book. In the case of Pipe Piper some people may think that is a film of the poem - but as we know it isn't. If they are told otherwise they may not fancy a story entirely set in WW2. Alice and Requiem both start in the war but in both stories this is merely a platform for the ongoing events. So I would still plump for Requiem - but I am biased - as I said previously; I am in love with Janet Prentice! Who knows what a more rational person would choose? :-)
Actually the young lady in Pied Piper also ticks all the boxes for a nice daughter to have. Other Shutists would probably opt for Trustee from the Toolroom - it is always top of the list on the web site.
Well, we'll go with Requiem for the poll, then. :-) I thought the library where I work had a copy of A Town Like Alice, but it turns out we don't (I'll have to remedy that!), and don't have one of Requiem either. The only Shute novels we have are On the Beach, Ordeal, and The Chequer Board. Even though I've never seen the movie, Alice is the only one of his books that particularly interests me, and I'm not sure why --maybe because I'm intrigued by the Outback, which I've never visited. (?)Of course, I'll still cast my vote for le Carre's book. :-) I'm hoping for a poll winner that's relatively short, so I can work in another read in July as well!
Ordeal? I don't know this one and it doesn't appear on the web site. Requiem has an alternative title of The Breaking Wave - possibly for the USA market for some reason. I can't see any other alternative titles on the web site.If you are interested in life in the outback then you should definitely get into NS! Several of his books are located there. Before he moved to Oz he had frequently traveled there for holidays and research and the like. Many of his books are located in the UK then move to Oz, and back again sometimes. In addition many of them feature aviation and/or sailing, which were 2 of his passions - the other being engineering which appears in at least 2 from memory.
Thanks for that info, Christopher; I'll keep it in mind!Ordeal was originally titled What Happened to the Corbetts. It seems to be another case of an alternate title for the American edition.
That was the last NS book that I read - just a few weeks ago. I first read all of the NS books in the 70's & 80's. Consequently I have forgotten the stories - apart from a few more memorable ones. In some cases I remember a story but attribute it to the wrong title. The best part of this is that when I re-read them the stories are generally new to me - again.
Christopher wrote: "The best part of this is that when I re-read them the stories are generally new to me - again."That's often the case with me as well when I reread books I read decades ago. :-)
The poll is now up and ready for voting, at this link: https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2... ! It will run through Sunday, June 16.
The winner of the poll for our July common read is The Spy Who Came In from the Cold by John le Carré.The thread for the discussion of the book will be open by the end of June.
Everyone is welcome to join our discussion.
If you can't read the book right away, don't worry. The thread will stay open for comments even after the end of July.
There's also a film version of the book from the 1960's starring Richard Burton and Claire Bloom.
I'm in! I'll be starting a few days late, but I expect it to be a fairly quick read.
Assuming that we continue our practice of doing an annual group common read each July, this year's read will be coming up in just a couple of months. So it's not too early to start brainstorming about what to read.Although I've read novels by both of Anne Bronte's more famous sisters, so far she's the only one of the three whose work I've never sampled. Of her two novels, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is usually regarded as the best, but picking it for a group read might be problematic, because for most of its printing history, it was published only in mutilated editions, and being sure that you get hold of a complete one can be tricky. However, her first novel, Agnes Grey, doesn't present that problem. Would anyone else also be interested in reading it?
I've read both of Anne's books. They're good, but I don't have time to read them for a second time.Would anyone be interested in Pied Piper by Nevil Shute? It's a lovely book.
The only book by Shute that I currently have on my to-read shelf is A Town Like Alice. I could get behind that one as a suggestion; but although I'm sure that Pied Piper is a worthy book, it doesn't strike me personally as a must read in the same way that the former book does.I'm not sensing much of a groundswell for either Agnes Grey or Pied Piper. But we can put both books in the poll next month, and see what happens!
Maybe we can think of a third choice?
Rosemarie wrote: "Maybe we can think of a third choice?"Hmmm! Well... what about Lyrical Ballads, the landmark 1798 collection by Wordsworth and Coleridge? It's on your to-read shelf; it's not technically on mine, but it might as well be, since it's an important work that's been on my radar for a long time, and which I know I really ought to read. And at only 118 pages, it should be a relatively quick read.
Rosemarie wrote: "That works for me. Great idea!"In that case, I'll withdraw my Agnes Grey suggestion. We know that Lyrical Ballads can at least get two votes. :-)
Exactly.Right now my husband and I are on a river cruise in France with poor wifi. I was lucky to log on now, but don't know when I'll have another decent connection. I'm glad I had a chance to read your message.
Rosemarie wrote: "Right now my husband and I are on a river cruise in France with poor wifi. I was lucky to log on now, but don't know when I'll have another decent connection. I'm glad I had a chance to read your message."Hang in there, Rosemarie! I'm having my share of computer woes as well. On Monday evening, I hooked up a brand new PC I'd ordered, to replace my superannuated one, but had trouble connecting it to my wireless Internet. Today, I discovered that this is because it's incapable of connecting to wireless Internet. :-( This is the second new computer in a row that I've had to return; I'm hoping the third one will be the charm! Meanwhile, I've hooked the old computer back up (it has issues, but it's better than nothing).
What a nuisance! The fact that it can't connect to wireless internet is really strange.
Rosemarie wrote: "What a nuisance! The fact that it can't connect to wireless internet is really strange."According to my oldest grandson, who's into computers, most of the newer home/office PCs (as opposed to laptops) require a cable to connect to the Internet. That's because manufacturing the part that allows wireless connections costs money; so omitting it "Cuts Overhead!" which is now the sacred goal of global business. :-( (Unfortunately, I can't use a cable, because the modem it would have to connect to is in a widely separated part of the house.)
However, gaming computers generally are still manufactured with a wireless capability, for reasons relating to how they're usually used. They're more expensive than typical home/office PCs, but lower-line ones are still affordable; so I've ordered one of those. I'm just hoping I can get my money refunded from the purchase of the latest dud!
Granted, only two of us have posted so far on the question of what to read as a group this year; but the poll to pick the book would normally go up in a couple of days. Given that we (all two of us!) seem to have reached a consensus for Lyrical Ballads, is it really necessary to have a poll, or can we say that Lyrical Ballads is the group's choice by acclamation? Rosemarie, what do you think?
You read my mind, Werner! That's exactly what I was going to suggest.We got back from our trip to France last Thursday, and on Saturday I came down with a doozie of a cold. I'm finally feeling more human today.
Sorry you were sick, Rosemarie, but glad to know that you're on the mend!
Fans of British Writers
Books mentioned in this topic
Lyrical Ballads (other topics)A Town Like Alice (other topics)
Pied Piper (other topics)
Agnes Grey (other topics)
The Spy Who Came In from the Cold (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Nevil Shute (other topics)John Le Carré (other topics)
John Le Carré (other topics)
G.K. Chesterton (other topics)
Robert Bolt (other topics)
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